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Interesting thread. I have only heard mumblings over accuracy with Kimbers 1911's. I've had very good shooting weatherby vanguards and tikka t3's. Thats disappointing to hear about the kimbers, nice looking rifles.

Kimber handguns are outstanding and thats a fact!

Colorado Cowboy
Cowboy Action Shooter; Endowment Life Member-NRA
The Original Rocket Scientist-Retired
"My Father always considered a walk in the mountains as the equivalent of church going."
Aldous Huxley

I've got a good friend who runs a gun store and deals with Kimber. He bought a tricked out 1911 from them that has been back to the factory 3 times over feeding issues. He currently wants his money so he can customize a different brand himself.

Anywhere you see Kimber you see both terrible and rave reviews. My friend's store is the same way. His theory is that their quality control sucks. They produce some truly fine firearms, and some real lemons there just isn't any consistency. I expect that I may need some minor modifications or tweaking when buying a Rossi, not when buying a Kimber.

I had a Colt light rifle in 7 mag I really loved except for the safety. If a 3 position safety was available for that rifle I'd NEVER have sold it. I think Kimber has a great idea with their rifles, but if I ever buy one it will be a used one that I can shoot first. I want to verify I have one of the good ones.

I am Match/League Director in an indoor winter Bulls Eye pistol league. The reason for my statement is that the guys that shoot Kimbers love them. Several also have them for concealed carry. I have heard nothing but praise for theit handguns. I don't shoot one as I shoot a S & W K38 Target Masterpiece for my CF gun, now that is a classic!

Colorado Cowboy
Cowboy Action Shooter; Endowment Life Member-NRA
The Original Rocket Scientist-Retired
"My Father always considered a walk in the mountains as the equivalent of church going."
Aldous Huxley

I don't intend to insult anyone's pistol shooting prowess, but a 1911 is an experts weapon, and I have seen more people return 1911's of every brand because of poor reliability. Many of these cases are due to operator error rather than mechanical issues. They require a more consistent grip (to reliably actuate the grip safety), more break-in time, and a stronger grip (to provide enough back pressure to ensure reliable cycling, this is also the most common reason for stovepipes in all handguns).

People like to buy 1911's because they are sexy/nostalgic, but they aren't for the novice shooter. I cringe when I see a novice buying a mini 1911 for concealed carry, because I am pretty certain they aren't going to practice enough to be proficient. If you need more evidence of this in the last few years the top trigger pullers in the US Army (Delta) have switched from 1911s to Glocks, because when the blood is pumping K.I.S.S. rules.

Full disclosure: I own a modified Kimber, and I shoot it in tactical competitions and in training, but even after putting 5000+ rnds through it I still carry a wheel gun or a striker pistol for defense. K.I.S.S.

One thing for sure, even as I digress from the original post, in all the competition shooting I do, none of the top shooters shoot out of the box, untuned guns. Everything I shoot has been worked over by an expert 'smith who specializes in the gun and the discipline. you don't win with a stock, factory gun!

Colorado Cowboy
Cowboy Action Shooter; Endowment Life Member-NRA
The Original Rocket Scientist-Retired
"My Father always considered a walk in the mountains as the equivalent of church going."
Aldous Huxley

Disappointed to learn this about Kimber, but glad I have all of you to steer me in the right direction! I will probably end up buying a Tikka or the cheapest Sako A7 I can pro-deal through my work. I wanted a new Win Featherweight :-/ I also hand load my own ammunition and it shoots sub 1/2 MOA off my shooting sticks. 6.5x55. only thing is, it's an Encore and I am hungry for a bolt gun.

Since you mentioned a Sako A7, I bought one on clearance last winter at Cabela's. I didn't get it scoped until a few weeks ago and then started trying to find a load for it. I was very disappointed with it's accuracy at first when trying to work up a load. After much shooting and trying different loads, I finally found a load that it shoots 5/8" groups with. I am happy with it now. So, if you hand load, you many times can find a load that the rifle likes.

So, if you hand load, you many times can find a load that the rifle likes.

That my friend is what handloading is all about. Used to be that you could save yourself money reloading. Today you still can, but realistically the benefit is finding that one particular load that your rifle really shoots best. Every rifle is different (even the same brand/model/caliber) and will shoot certain loads much better than others. The challenge is to find it!

Colorado Cowboy
Cowboy Action Shooter; Endowment Life Member-NRA
The Original Rocket Scientist-Retired
"My Father always considered a walk in the mountains as the equivalent of church going."
Aldous Huxley

I think Kimber has fixed their accuracy problems with their rifle. I read that the guns are very nice and accurate. They did have a problem but it is corrected. Pistols have been good all along. I think Field and Stream did an article recently.